How To Play Bar Chords
In this free guitar lesson we will cover how to play bar chords.
How To Play Bar Chords On Guitar
The correct term is “barre chord” and is perhaps the most useful tool you will have in your guitar playing toolbox. With it you will be able to play any song you’ve learned in any key. The chord is played across all 6 strings and key changes can be made by repositioning your hand on the neck simply by moving to another fret. It is called a “barre” chord because you index finger forms a bar across one fret. Here is an example of a major barre chord:
How to Play the F major barre chord:
We identify the root note of the barre chord by the note that is being played on the 6th(lowest or thickest) string, the low E string. The notes on the low E string as we have already learned are as follows:
Starting at the 1st fret:
F - F#(or Gb) - G - G# (or Ab) - A - A#( or Bb) - B - C - C# (or Db) - D - D# (or Eb) - E - F and they repeat…
The guitar chords that are based on the notes on the low E string are called Type 1 barre chords. Here are some diagrams to get you familiar with the various barre chords; they are all F rooted chords:
The F 7th barre chord
The F minor barre chord
The F minor 7th barre chord
When you play an open E chord you are actually playing a barre chord using the nut as your barre.
The open E major chord
Type 2 Barre Chords
The 2nd type of barre chord is built not from the open E chord but instead from the open A chords. Like the first type, the key or root note changes are made by sliding up the neck to different frets using the notes on the ‘A’ string as our root note instead of the ‘E’ string. The notes on the ‘A’ string starting on the 1st fret are as follows:
Bb - B - C - C#(or Db) - D - D#(or Eb) - F - F#(or Gb) - G - G#(or Ab) - A - A#(or Bb) - and so on.
Here are some examples:
Bb major barre chord
This is the way almost every guitarist plays the major Type 2 barre chord. It can be very difficult to bend your 3rd finger so that the note on the 1st string (high ‘E’) can be heard. With a little practice you will get it. A lot of players simply don’t play the High ‘E’ string when playing this chord.While most players use this fingering the correct way to play this chord is below. I must admit that in 31 years I’ve NEVER played this chord “correctly” , but it’s never been a problem.
“Correct” way to play the Type 2 major chord
Bb minor barre chord
Bb 7th barre chord
Bb minor 7th barre chord
Bb major 7th barre chord
This is a new chord (the major 7th) that we haven’t seen before. There is really no practical way to play this in the Type 1 barre, so it tends to only be used with open chords or the Type 2 barre chord.
*PRACTICE TIP*-Playing the barre chord on the first fret is the hardest position. You may want to practice these chords at the 5th fret (root would be ‘A’ for Type 1 and ‘D’ for Type 2) until you are comfortable. Also, it is EXTREMELY important that your fingers are arched above the strings and not laying across them. (The exception of course would be your index finger, since it is required to lay across all the strings).
In Review
Type 1 barre chords have their root notes taken from the note that is fretted on the 6th string(low ‘E’) while Type 2 barre chords have their root note taken from the note that is fretted on the 5th string(’A’ string).
